Rare earth materials, such as Nd (neodymium), Dy (dysprosium) and Pr (praseodymium) are beneficial in industrial applications and products such as disk drives, energy efficient lighting, and electro-magnetic apparatus such as generators and motors. In particular, rare earth magnets have found particular usefulness in hybrid and electric vehicles due to their compact structure.
Rare earth magnets are known for having high permanent magnetic properties, with magnetic forces substantially greater than their ferrite or ceramic counterparts. While such materials are not particularly in as short supply as the name might imply, rare earth magnets have found particular favor with industrial applications for permanent magnet motors, due to their strong magnetic field. The most common types of rare earth magnets include neodymium (Nd2Fe14B), and the older samarium-cobalt (SmCo5) magnets. Due to their brittle and corrosion prone properties, rare earth magnets are usually coated with a protective substance to promote stability and longevity. Increasing popularity with hybrid and electric vehicles is supporting the demand for these materials.